Learning Goal: You will be able to pronounce the names of food that most people mispronounce. You will sound super cultured. Also you can request other foods and I will add it to this article.
I am horrible at spelling (as you can tell from reading this site) and pronunciation. Here are some of the foods I was dying to talk about but was embarrassed to discuss because I could not say them right! After righting this article I feel much more confident.
Quinoa (“keen-wah”)
This word is so tricky – not going to lie – I spelled it wrong several times, and had to copy the youtube link to actually spell it right. I would sometimes say “kwuh-NO-uh” and “KWIN-wah,” “keen-o-a,” or “keen-o-wa”, but it is actually “keen-wah.” The dictionary also seems to accept “kee-noh–uh” which was one way I ways actually saying it (high five!).
Acai (Ah-sigh-Ee)
Go to any health food section and this antioxidant rich berry is everywhere – but how the heck do you say it? It is “Ah-sigh-Ee”
Cacao or Cocoa?
What is the difference between cacao (“kuh–kah-oh” or “kuh-kay-oh”) and cocoa (“koh-koh”)?
Some people claim that cacao refers to the dried partly fermented fatty seeds of a South American evergreen Theobroma cacao tree while cocoa refers to the processed, roasted, and powdered version of the bean that is used in chocolate.
However a definition of cocoa in the dictionary is cacao, so they can be used interchangeably and the only difference are the vowels.
Here are the two ways to say Cacao
1.
2.
In case you never had hot cocoa here is how you say cocoa
Chia (“Chee-uh”)
The only reason why I know how to say this one is because I had a chia pet “ch-ch-ch-chia!”
The original commercial
Chipotle (“chi-poht-ley”)
Not only is it a yummy splurge when eating out, but it is also a chili pepper used often in Mexican cuisine and it helps keep your metabolism running properly.. The dictionary states that the pronunciation is “chi-poht-ley.”
Broccoli rabe (BROK-ah lee rob)
Brocccoli rabe is a leafy green plant from the turnip family that has small broccoli-like florets. Most people know how to saw broccoli, it is the rabe, pronounced like the name “Rob” that throws everyone off.
This video is not pure pronunciation, but he says broccoli rabe correctly like 50 times
Caprese (“kah-PRAY-say”)
I love love love caprese salad, which is make of uncooked tomatoes, fresh mozzarella cheese, basil, olive oil, and if you are lucky balsamic vinegar. Look at how beautiful it is.
Check out this recipe for this kabob style caprese salad
I would always feel uncomfortable ordering it because I knew I was butchering the word.
I now know that I need to remember that the middle is “pray” and not “pre” and the ending is “say” and not “see.”
Crudités (kroo-dee-TAY)
If you are like me you were pronouncing this appetizer of raw veggies (like carrots and celery) “crud-ite.” WRONG. It is french and is pronounced “Kroo-dee-TAY.”
This video is not a pronunciation video… that is because the one video I found was actually WRONG, she was saying the ending as “tee” instead of “tay.” I was so mad about it. How do you say a word wrong when the whole point of your video is to show the pronunciation. Anyways, this video is about making a crudités platter, but he says the word correctly. You can also check out the dictionary recording.
Couldn’t get enough? Here are some resources. Also leave a comment on what you want me to investigate and I will look up how it is pronounced!
- http://blogs.villagevoice.com/forkintheroad/2010/02/43_most_mispron.php
- http://www.sfgate.com/food/recipes-cooking/article/100-tongue-twisting-food-terms-5243470.php#photo-5900580
- http://www.buzzfeed.com/rachelysanders/food-words-you-might-be-pronouncing-wrong
- http://blogs.houstonpress.com/eating/2011/06/the_20_most_commonly_mispronou.php
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